Question: why do people have problems wiith there appearances

Helen O'Connor answered on 13 Jun 2011:

Hi Smuveinc, some people have what is called low self-esteem that can make them feel that they are not happy with their appearance (even if there is nothing wrong with their appearance). Self-esteem is what you believe about yourself, and how you feel about yourself. Some people have generally low self esteem in all areas of life, and some people have high self esteem about some things (like being good at exams) and then low self esteem about other things (like their appearance)

Sometimes, when people put on weight, or get some bad acne, they can worry about their appearance, and feel bad about it. This isnt helped by other people who might comment on it or be bullies about it.

When I work with people who feel bad about their appearance, the first thing we talk about is what they think they do well, what are their best qualities. We then talk about how they judge other people: do they judge people by their looks, or by their personalities? Mostly people say that they don’t judge other people by their appearance. This helps them put things into perspective. It often helps to talk about worries about appearance with someone.